News Details

Legislative session starts Jan. 30, State of State Address Jan. 31

1/26/2018

State of the State

Illinois lawmakers will return to the Capitol next week for three scheduled days of session on Jan. 30 and 31, and Feb. 1, which will include the Governor’s State of the State Address on Jan. 31 during a joint session of both chambers held in the House of Representatives.

While Gov. Bruce Rauner hasn’t made any public statements on what specifically will be included in his annual speech, typically governors use the event to paint a picture of both the current status of state government and their plans moving forward.

The Governor will return to the House for another joint session on Feb. 14 for his annual budget address, which will mark the start of the annual budget-making process in earnest.

Looking forward to the Spring Legislative Session

The beginning of the spring legislative session is the annual restart of the lawmaking process. Lawmakers in both chambers are filing new bills, which will continue up until the Feb. 16 deadline for new, substantive, non-appropriations legislation (not budget or spending bills). Bills will then be assigned to committees for hearings before advancing to the floor in either chamber. Bills must then pass out of a committee in the originating chamber before the deadline of April 13. Legislation that passes in one chamber will then head to the other chamber for passage on or before a deadline of April 25. The deadlines may be extended in either chamber. Appropriations legislation (budget or spending bills) do not have the same deadlines and are often passed in the final days before scheduled adjournment on May 31.

Senate Republicans maintain their commitment for the upcoming Spring Legislative session to fight for commonsense reforms that will help improve government effectiveness, efficiency and accountability while helping to improve the state’s lagging economy and grow good-paying jobs.